The stakes were sky-high for all four heading into a sweltering Race 1 at the gorgeously green Birmingham facility, as a pair of DNFs at the previous round had seen DiSalvo forced to cede the lead-change to Herrin for the first time this season.

In the end, however, victory shone not on points-leaders or former points-leaders, but on those from the road race-proud state of Oklahoma, as Broken Arrow’s Eslick led M4 Suzuki’s Dane Westby (Tulsa) and Vesrah Suzuki’s Cory West (Oklahoma City) to what some OK-fans have labeled an “Oklapodium.”

“It’s been a tough season so far,” said Eslick, who’d gone winless in 2011 until today. “It means a lot to get this win … it’s pretty awesome.”

Eslick launched into the lead off the start, and – in an almost unheard-of occurrence in the shark-tank-like Daytona SportBike class – was never forced to release it, save for a brief skirmish with Jacobsen on Lap 1. Instead, he began almost immediately to spin out a modest lead that grew, over the 21 laps, to an unassailable one. Helping matters were that fact that two of his biggest recent threats, Herrin and Jacobsen, were negated early in the contest, Jacobsen sliding out at the end of Lap 1 and Herrin – pounding his tank in fury – having to pit just minutes later with a seized engine.

DiSalvo, trying desperately to chase down Eslick from second, initially appeared to be the heir-apparent challenger once Jacobsen and Herrin were out, but the Latus rider was likewise soon struggling, getting shuffled back to fifth in the lead pack. With about seven to go, a three-way battle for second kicked off between Aquino, Westby, and West, and as the laps clicked down, it only intensified.

Danny Eslick (GEICO Suzuki GSX-R600) says: “I could see the numbers on the scoring tower changing position, [and] I kept seeing different numbers in second, so I knew they were racing pretty hard back there. I just didn’t want to do anything crazy and mess up.”

While Eslick checked out, heading the field by nearly four seconds at one point, DiSalvo did everything he could to keep the trio in front of him within grasp, but was ultimately forced to settle for fifth, his run of recent bad luck seeming to stretch yet further. And while Aquino was left to a solid but somewhat disappointing fourth, Westby and West each had plenty to celebrate, Westby claiming the race’s runner-up position while West took over the overall points-lead in the Daytona SportBike Championship, 136 points to Eslick’s 135.

Corey West (Vesrah Suzuki GSX-R600) says: “It’s awesome. I can’t thank the Vesrah guys enough. Now we just have to try to push on and get another podium tomorrow.”